California Construction News staff writer
The City of Oakland has been awarded $14.3 million in State of California Homekey funds to develop vacant city-owned land in Deep East Oakland.
The Dignity Village Oakland project at 9418 Edes Ave/606 Clara St. in Deep East Oakland will be the first Homekey development to feature new construction on vacant city-owned land.
Modular housing units will be constructed off-site. Dignity Village will be located one block away from the Brookfield Library, the Ira Jinkins Community Center, and the William Patterson Park, forming a hub of housing and community services.
Oakland awarded $6.3 million to the project in 2023 that facilitated successful leveraging of state funds.
“Homekey has been an incredible program for our city, helping us secure 467 new units of permanent supportive housing since 2020,” said Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao. “This aligns with Oakland’s goals of expanding supportive housing with wrap-around services to get more neighbors off our streets and parks and into safe, dignified conditions.”
DignityMoves and Housing Consortium of the East Bay are co-developing the site, the Housing Consortium of the East Bay will both manage the property and act as the service provider.
“HCEB is proud of our partnership with the City of Oakland and DignityMoves,” said Darin Lounds, Executive Director of Housing Consortium of the East Bay. “Forty-one brand new homes will be provided for our older neighbors experiencing homelessness. HCEB is thankful for this opportunity to serve the community and we are thankful for the Homekey program.”
Homekey, administered by California Housing & Community Development, is the state’s renowned program that began at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic to facilitate the purchase and/or rehabilitation of hotels, motels, vacant apartment buildings, manufactured homes, and other properties, and convert them into homes for people experiencing or at risk of homelessness.
Oakland’s Homekey projects include:
- Clifton Hall, a former dormitory that offers 63 units for seniors and families;
- Inn at Temescal, a repurposed motel with 21 units for veterans;
- Project Reclamation, a series of scattered single-family homes throughout Oakland for families and individuals;
- Piedmont Place, a repurposed motel with 44 units;
- Inn by the Coliseum, a repurposed motel with 36 units;
- Kingdom Builders Transitional Housing, a repurposed motel with 34 transitional units for homeless youth and formerly incarcerated residents; and
- Imperial Inn, a repurposed motel that will bring over 47 permanent supportive housing units.
- Quality Inn, a repurposed motel with 103 permanent supportive housing units for unhoused residents and transitional-aged youth.
